Feet to the Sky
by otaku-chin
Summary: She had dismissed the whole thing as a hoax, meant to catch the attention of Edo's resident dogs - they always seemed to have their noses to the wind, sniffing out the next bone the Amanto threw into the wind - but this time, it was different.


_Shake me from the things I think make me whole  
>And with made-up rituals replenish this soul<br>Drink the wine to the bottom of the glass  
>And watch it refill from air<br>Turn our cheeks to the ground and feet to the sky  
>And take it from there<em>

_**Lulu and the Lampshades**  
><em>

* * *

><p><em>"How annoying." <em>

She had dismissed the whole thing as a hoax, meant to catch the attention of Edo's resident dogs - they always seemed to have their noses to the wind, sniffing out the next bone the Amanto threw into the wind - but this time, it was different. It seemed as if someone was picking meat off this particular bone and throwing it into the gutter, inviting rats to chew on the scraps. What rat in their right mind would ignore so juicy a tidbit?

_"You would think that he would remember what happened last time and realize that the sweet taste of victory was the poison fooling his taste buds." _

A chilling wind chose that moment to pick up, biting at her face and bare hands. She reached up and tugged her scarf up over her nose. It was unusually cold, even for the beginning of November. Snow clouds had hung heavily in the sky for weeks, releasing light showers of snow whenever they deemed fit, which was usually the most inconvenient time for the humans living below them. As soon as night came, the freezing temperatures began icing over anything that was unfortunate enough to be left outside, be it people or their possessions.

She rubbed her hands together, hoping that the friction would bring feeling back to the tips of her fingers. If she was spotted, she couldn't allow herself to lose focus and be caught with her guard down. In most cases, she would have risked fighting, but the stakes were higher than normal. While a fight might provide a distraction, she wouldn't let herself be naive enough to believe that stalling would delay the payment that would be demanded of her if the dogs were made aware of her presence. The price wasn't one she was willing to pay.

"Ojō-sama*..."

She didn't turn around to look at her companion. "Yes?"

"It's midnight. We should leave. I doubt Tetsuya will make contact now."

"...let's go."

She stood up from the stoop she had sat in, careful not to catch the toe of her shoes on the tiles of the roof lining the top of the compound wall.

"Go ahead, Yanagi."

"You will be behind me, ojō-sama?"

"...of course."

There was a click as tiles shifted beneath her companion's feet, a pause, then the sound of his retreating footsteps. She listened carefully, waiting for them to fade away. When silence reigned, she clicked her tongue in annoyance. Yanagi knew her well.

_"Let the rat out of it's cage and it will only run around in circles, bewildered by the freedom it has been granted." _

She stretched her arms over her head. Sitting for hours outside was not, in hindsight, her smartest idea, but she had been desperate. It had been a week since she had heard anything from her twin. She was starting to feel anxious, although she knew better than to show it. Yanagi Sota was more perceptive than she gave him credit for. At his subtle suggestion, she had left Oe in charge and departed for the Shinsengumi headquarters in the hope that her brother would have left some kind of message at the agreed meeting place. There had been nothing.

_"You know I hate surprises, Tetsuya." _

It was as she turned to leave that she felt a burning tingle settle on the back of her neck. It was a strange sensation that sent chills down her spine. She had never felt anything like it before. Glancing over her shoulder, she met a cold gunmetal blue glare that contradicted the heat spreading across her shoulders. Their eyes remained locked and the dislike that shone in his only seemed to intensify the longer they stared at each other.

_"This person...is he trying to cast Amaterasu*?"_

Her gaze dropped to his Shinsengumi uniform and the katana at his hip. She fought a derisive snort. It was a little ironic that a reputed oni* was the one interrupting her trip into Hell. She's heard the rumors about the second-in-command of the Shinsengumi - the man with the piercing blue eyes and violent, unforgiving temper.

"Can I help you, oni-san?"

Hijikata Toshiro didn't say anything for a moment, taking another puff of the cigarette dangling from his lips before he spoke. "Don't you think that's a stupid question, brat?"

She hated being mistaken for a child. Even when she was young, she had hated the way adults assumed that she was to stupid or naive to realize the hard facts of life. She may have been a no-good troublemaker, but she had always been sharper than she looked. It was, she supposed, what people had and still did hate about her.

She couldn't blame him for his mistake though, which was annoying. She'd always been shorter than her brother, who was considered relatively small. People who had made the mistake of calling her cute had quickly learned that her size was incredibly good at hiding the murderous intent that she could exude if she chose too. She didn't think that her killer instincts would be of much use against this man. He was clearly a lot stronger physically than she was and she didn't doubt that he was a better swordsman than she was.

In response to his question, she gave a noncommittal shrug. "It's like you said, oni-san. I'm just a brat. I wouldn't know what you would define as stupid."

If looks could kill, she didn't doubt that she'd be dead before she hit the ground. Although, there was a chance that her body might have shriveled up and turned to dust before that could happen. She couldn't put her finger on what exactly it was, but something about the challenge in his eyes made her want to giggle like the child she'd been mistaken for. The fact that he felt the need to challenge her at all, despite his clear advantage, just seemed so ridiculous and...juvenile.

Biting down on the urge to laugh, she spun on her heel, deciding that it was probably best that she left before she gave in to her strange little impulse.

"Oi. Why are you here?"

The urge to laugh was becoming harder to resist. "Oh, no reason, oni-san. A brat like me just got the visiting times confused, that's all."

With that and a backwards, flippant wave of the hand, she disappeared into the night, leaving behind an enraged oni and the memory of glowing amber eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>This is going to be so much fun. I am, honestly, really excited. I just have a good feeling about this story. Not often I get those (posting fiction usually means me suffering what most might call a nervous breakdown because I have so much self confidence) but I guess that means I should make the most of it. <strong>

**I was inspired by the song Feet to the Sky (well, duh) by Lulu and the Lampshades. I like the plot bunnies that the words inspire, so I'll post the lyrics at the start of every chapter as a reminder (although, if you find it annoying, I'll stop, I promise. Maybe). **

**Anyway, I'm going to stop rambling and get down to explaining all the cultural references and shizzle.**

**1. Ojō-sama - it can mean a whole range of different things but it is primarily used to address a young woman of a high class. Some people get it confused with Ohime-sama, which is used to address a princess, but they aren't that closely related. A princess can be addressed as Ojō-sama, but that's only because she is a high class young woman, not because the term means "Princess". Why does Yanagi refer to our heroine in this manner? I wonder...**

**2. Amaterasu - I threw a Naruto reference in because it's ended and I'm feeling sentimental. Anyway, Amaterasu is a Fire Release jutsu that covers it's target in black flames that are unavoidable and will, supposedly, burn even after the target has been reduced to ash and/or vaporized. Nice, huh? **

**3. Oni - they are a type of Japanese yokai that are usually shown as demons, devils, ogres or trolls (hahahaha). I used it for the irony but I also used it because it sounds incredibly similar to Ani, which is a term used to refer to your older brother. Even the kanji are quite similar, oni's kanji being 鬼 and Ani's kanji being 兄. It also sounds identical to Onii-san (used to refer to someone else's brother), giving me a little plot bunny to play around with before I've even begun. I'll have a lot of fun with this one. **

**Now that my ramblings done (and this is just the prologue - jeez) I'll leave you to your much more interesting lives. **

**TTFN**

**Otaku x **


End file.
